. >> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. these are the stories that we're following for you. an u.n. envoy leaving crimea after a tense incident at a local cafe. leaders trying to de-escalate the crisis in ukraine. president obama pushing for a rice in minimum wage. he's expected to speak to the media, when w he does we'll brig

that to you live. >> we're following a developing story out of ukraine. a short while ago a group of armed men briefly holding the u.n.'s top envoy against his will in crimea. it happened in crimea. we heard from an u.n. spokesperson saying that the man that you see here will return to kiev and continue his mission in ukraine. nick schifrin on the ground joining us now by phone. nickic give us a break down of what unfolded outside that have cafe. >> i think its important to underline that yes, he will return to kiev. he was run out of the country and it's a sign that law and order in this city is really not being led by police at all. this incident started about an hour and a half ago. robert berry was threatened. after he left the ukrainian naval base. that's when he left his car trying to find a little refuge. he ended up in a cafe.

that's when militia members he said were armed blockaded him in that cafe. they were there for 20 or 30 minutes or so. inside was a group of journalists as well. but outside those militia members were blocking him and keeping him inside that cafe. at some point in that conversation he agreed to leave crimea. he did not want to leave crimea. initially he was asked when first threatened he said no, i'm not leaving. that's when they stepped it up and blockaded him inside that cafe. after he agreed to leave that's when a group of pro russian demonstrators about 40 or 50, they came to the cafe with large russian flag chanting putin, putin, russia, russia. they created a corridor through which surrey was led by militia members. he was driven directly to the airport. this was not his choice.

these were were not people that he knew. these were people forcing minimum to do something that he did not intend to do. he was led in the airport. after 15 minute conversation on the ground and now he's boarded his flight to istanbul. he's not even staying in the country. they're basically forcing him to take the next flight which was istanbul and the u.n. said he'll return to kiev as soon as he can to continue his mission. >> nick, as you indicated to us earlier your crew was detained for a short while. what is this saying about law and order in the capitol of crimea. >> reporter: well, that's the concern that a lot of people are having. police are not running security right now. we saw police in the airport watching militia members comes in and out with the senior u.n. diplomat. we saw police outside of the cafe watching the senior diplomat being taken into a car, not on his own volition and driven away.

the police did nothing, were unwilling to do nothing or unable to do anything, for whatever reason they stood by. these civilians, militia members, pro russian people are emboldened by the russian president and they're making their presence felt very much whether inside the capitol, outside of ukrainian bases, threatening ukraine cocaine soldiers peep these people have become emboldened, and it seems that they're emboldened. >> we heard from an union representative that the--we heard from an u.n. representative that the representative will return to

kiev to continue his mission. of the 28 members of the n.a.t.o. lines, has there been any progress on the diplomatic front? >> well, certainly effort on the diplomatic front, del. we've seen of course those meetings at the organization for security in corporation are europe. we've seen those meetings in paris. we haven't heard from secretary of state kerry quite yet or foreign minister lahborov. we've seen the messages tweeted out and the body language is quite tense. we'll have to see what they have to say. there was that meeting among the n.a.t.o. group, and after that meet the n.a.t.o. secretary general had this to say. >> we have put the entire range

of n.a.t.o.-russian relations under review. they will take assistance on this in early april. these steps send a clear message that russia's actions have consequences. >> reporter: now consequences coming from a military organization such as n.a.t.o. is something that we have not heard previously in this crisis, del. so far what we've heard from the west are plans for economic repercussions. as you heard the n.a.t.o. leader saying this will have to be worked out, and it will be some time before precise consequences come from n.a.t.o. will be announced. >> with what just happened, what are you hearing concerning this u.n. envoy robert surrey, what are you hearing about it in kiev? >> reporter: well, it's been very interesting in kiev to monitor what their reaction has

been to events in crimea. let's remember, the source on that is the kiev, ukrainian, foreign ministry. they say when they approached the special envoy, they said they were acting under orders. that draws into line what the ukrainians have been saying all along. those paramilitary groups are actually russian soldiers acting in direct order from moscow. that contradict what is russian foreign minister lahborov said a few hours ago. >> we do not have any power over them. they do not listen to our orders. but the russian military force notice black sea fleet are placed at the right spots and special alert measures have been adopted to control the black sea fleet because as the president said we are not going to allow

any blood to be spilled. >> reporter: now we have to be very careful where the sourcing of this comes from. all those with an interest in what is happening at ukraine are looking at this from their own view, and they have an agenda. so we keep very careful tabs any time there is an announcement that comes out of anybody about an incident of this nature. there is clearly a propaganda war going on along the tensions on the ground. >> phil ittner for us live in kiev. meanwhile the organization for security and corporation in europe said it is sending a mission of 35 personnel to on their way odessa. they are scheduled to be in country until march 12th. robert, in speaking before the senate armed services committee chuck hagel spilling

out any u.s. military role in ukraine. >> this morning the defense department is pursuing measures to support our allies stepping up joint training through aviation detachment in poland. it's an area that i visited a few weeks ago. and augmenting the participation in n.a.t.o.'s air policing mission on the baltic peninsula. >> robert english is the director of the international school in southern los angeles. i want to replay that tape with the u.n. ambassador being detained in a cafe against his will, and then being escorted out of the country and as we see this, what do you make of what is going on right now in the capitol of crimea? >> reporter: things are in danger of spinning out of control.

we're really at risk of some spark, provocation, accident, leading to major loss of life, and then some much larger and more deadly conflict. precisely incidents like this which we've been lucky to avoid so far are why we need to step back, both sides cool the rhetoric and begin working back channels of diplomacy to find a compromised solution. nobody is going to win this continuing on the path that we, the europeans, and the russians have set ourselves on to date. >> with regards to that spark there are concerns being voiced by our reporters in both kiev and simferopol. does either side gain anything if that spark does ignite a larger conflict, and if so, who? >> whose to gain are the extremists. not the majority of ethnic

russian interests in the eastern part of the country or the majority of the centrist of ukraineist interest in the center and west. those who want violence so their options will win will gain from this. moderatist people won't. >> setting up the conflict between the pro european union forces and the pro russian sides whether or not the armed forces >> we do not have any power over them. they do not listen to our orders. but the russian military forces in the black sea fleet are placed at the right spots, and some special alert measures have been adopted to control the black sea fleet. because as our president said we are not going to allow any blood to be spilled. >> mr. english, that said how do

you reach a diplomatic solution when both sides cannot agree on whether those are george you go past that, and you begin exploring a compromise that would allow both sides to backdown, and ukraine in the end to win. that compromise has to be something like broad guarantees of autonomy in crimea, and also protection of civil, ethnic rights of the russian-speaking members of the population. and with russia's pull back, russia's continued aid that ukraine need and we can't come up with, and a compromise why n.a.t.o. membership for ukraine

take ofen off for a long time because this makes russia crazy. >> the president questioning whether or not vladimir putin is playing with, i hate to use the vernacular, but with a full deck, and john mccain indicating that he thinks vladimir putin wants to return to the old days of the soviet union. how do you talk with vladimir putin with that as a backdrop? >> i'll leave mccain aside for a moment, and let's talk about chancellor merkel's comments. a better way of translating them is that putin sees this radically different. he has a radically different perspective of what happened the last couple of months and where we are today. while a lot of that is extremely exaggerated, the threat to life and property of russian speakers in eastern ukraine, he has a point that we shouldn't entirely dismiss, and that is the new

ukrainian government has brought in really scary extremist forces, people who had for years an explicitly anti-semitic, anti-russian, homophobic, ill-liberal ethnic ukrainian nationalism that gives russians justifiable cause for concern. not with what would happen tomorrow or in a week, but in the long run. the party which now has five portfolios in the government and other extremist members have been brought in who have a long record of the most vile anti. semitism and as we introduce the soviet style passports for all ukrainians where your ethnic identity is identified. it does not just say citizen of ukraine. under their plans it would say jew, russian or pole.

what a retrograde, creepy, disturbing move that would be. and of course they have called for at pollution of ukrainian--excuse me, of crimeaen a to autonomy. so they do have worry to have people like this in the ukrainian government. putin has gone so far exaggera exaggerating the dangers, but there is something there to take account of the settlement. >> robert english, thank you for being with us from los angeles, and remember for all the latest events coming out of ukraine and the rest of today's headlines you can follow us on twitter. president obama is in connecticut today pushing for an increase in the minimum wage. he is expected to speak within the hour. mike viqueira is at washington, d.c. now, and mike, when do we expect to hear from

the president? >> reporter: the prospects are dim for what the president wants. he backed that bill in the senate to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 up from its current $7.25. the prospects are dim because the congressional office a couple of weeks ago came out a report that bolstered republican fears and threats for voting against such a raise, saying that it would cost this country 500,000 jobs. that was the last nail in the coffin for any prospect. but this is an election year. the president is moving forward. he's still going to press forward. democrats think this is a winning issue. there is a lot at stake for the democratic party and for the country for that matter. the control of the senate tops that list. they need six turn arounds and on paper they stand a good prospect is of doing this. the president has been pushing

this for some time. lasand spike at connecticut stae university to an audience of students. >> the president going to be combining a little politics and policy while he is out of town today. the d & c dinner tonight in boston. >> speaking of politics, yes, and the goal here of the president is doing this repeatedly over the courts of the last several days. he had a fundraising dinner as well in washington. he's hammering home these themes that are near and dear to the core democratic voters. the president telling these political rallies that democrats typically don't turn out for midterm elections. he wants to see that change. what he's doing is very interesting, he's combining some of the themes, today it's the minimum wage and then he'll do fundraisers. he goes to boston to raise money for the democratic committee.

>> three al jazeera staff members detained in egypt making their second court appearance. seen here in white jumpsuits, have been in prison for more than two months. their trial is now adjourned to march 24th. dozens of journalists covering those proceedings, and al jazeera continues to reject any and all charges. coming up, secretary chuck hagel not supporting the budget for reasons like this, a fighter jet that no one is using.

>> as tensions rise in ukraine, al jazeera america is there. >> russian ships only a few hundred feet off the coast... >> with reporters on the ground >> if they give the order to start shooting, they will... >> asking the tough questions... >> why send the troops in now? >> getting you the facts... >> is it possible that crimea is just lost? >> i'm afraid that may be the facts on the ground... >> keeping you informed... >> we have a standoff here... ukanian troops... russian troops... >> special coverage continues right hear on your gobal news leader al jazeera america russia, as long as none of us are inside of ukraine trying to meddle and intervene, certainly not militarily with decisions that >> on wall street, stock settling down after two days of wild swings. the dow right now in negative territory. but we're going cut away to president obama, who is in connecticut at this hour.

he's talking about wanting to raise the minimum wage, a theme he has been on since the beginning of the year with the state of the union address taking executive action. giving an increase with the minimum wage to federal government contractors saying he wants the wage to be $10.10. we listen now in connecticut. [applause] >> we were checking the wall street numbers just a moment ago. the dow down. the president there in connecticut making a stop later tonight in boston for a fundraiser with the dnc. >> obama: go blue devils! [ cheering ]

it is good to be back in connecticut. [ cheering ] i want to thank your wonderful governor, dan malloy, for that wonderful introduction. i want to thank your president jack miller for inviting me here today. [ cheering ] we've got members of your student government behind me. i couldn't help but notice your student government logo, which has a gavel and a pitchfork. which is pretty intense. i wish some folks in congress

used the gavel more. less pitchfork. we also have members of your non-student government. one of our finest members of our cabinet who just cares so much about working families and works tirelessly for families every single day, secretary tom perez is here. [applause] we've got all five of connecticut representatives in congress, including ccsu alum john larsen is in the house. [ cheering ] another proud ccsu alum, aaron stewart, your mayor, along with mayor segara and other mayors and legislators from across connecticut. today we're doing something a little different than usual.

usually when i hit the road and talk with folks like all of you, i got a governor with me. but you are special. so we decided one governor wasn't enough. so in addition we have devalue patrick of massachusetts, peter somelynn from vermont. this is like a governor super group, the justice league of governors. i call them the new england patriots, but that name is already taken. [laughter] i love you back.

but we can't just spend the whole day talking about how we love each other. that's not why i came. we are here today--we're here today because each of us cares deeply about creating new jobs and new opportunities for all americans. and we're at this interesting moment in our economy. our economy has been growing, our businesses have created 85,000 new jobs. those are all things that we should be proud of. but there are some trends out there that have been battering the middle class for a long, long time, well, before this great recession hit. and in some ways those trends are gotten worse, not better.

the nature of today's economy with technology and globalization means that there are folks at the top who are doing better than ever but average wages have barely budged. average incomes have not gone up. too many americans are working harder than ever just to keep up. as i stated in my state of the union address we have to reverse those trends. it is a central task for all of us to build an economy that works for everybody, not just for some. [applause] that's what every one of these governors and tom perez believes in, that's what we've got in the public service for. i hope dan and peter don't mind me sharing this, but while we were driving over here, they were talking about the fact that

when they were growing up they both had dyslexia. because of this incredible fierce love of their parents, but because also there were folks there to help them they achieved and may these extraordinary achievements. duvall has a similar story. he grew up in the south side of chicago. [ cheering ] you know, and came from a very modest background. but somebody gave him a chance. so many of us understand that at the heart of america the central premise of this country is the

chance to achieve your dreams if you work hard. if you take responsibility. that it doesn't matter where you start, it's where you finish. and in america we believe in an opportunity for all. we believe that our success should not be determined by the circumstances of our birth. it's determined by each of us, but also by a society that's committed to everybody succeeding. it doesn't matter what you look like, where you come from, what your last name is, who you love. what matters is the strength of your work ethic, and the power of your dreams and the your willingness to take responsibility for yourself but also for larger society. that's what makes america the place that it is, why it continues to be a beacon

attracting people from all around the world. the idea that you can make it here if you try. there have been a lot of news about foreign affairs around the world over the last several days, but also for the last couple of years. and one of the things that you see, whether it's in the middle east, africa, individuals want a chance to make it if they try. what makes us special is we already do that. when we are at our best. but we've got some work to do to match up our ideals with the reality that is happening on the ground right now. the opportunity and agenda i've laid out gives us the ability to

restore this opportunity for this generation, this generation of people studying here and who are about to enter the workforce. it has four parts. something that i know many are interested in, more good jobs that pay good wages. we can't be satisfied recovering the jobs that were lost during the reception. we have to create an economy that is building a steady supply of good jobs today and well into the future. jobs in high tech manufacturing, energy, exports, american innovation. that's job number one. job number two, training more americans with the skills they need to fill those good jobs. so that our workforce is prepared for the jobs of tomorrow. part three, guaranteeing every